


Wake Me Up

by TDKeh16



Series: Tumblr Fics and Prompts [29]
Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Fluffy Ending, Love Confessions, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Mutual Pining, One Shot, injury mention
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-02
Updated: 2016-10-02
Packaged: 2018-08-18 23:07:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,914
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8179207
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TDKeh16/pseuds/TDKeh16
Summary: Dex gets worrisome news while on a roadie, so Nursey insists on driving him home to Maine in the middle of the night to see his family.





	

**Author's Note:**

> From the prompt: "You can always wake me up..."

Nursey opened his eyes to find Dex pacing around their dark hotel room. "Hey...?"

"Shit, sorry. Did I wake you?"

"You can always wake me up..." Nursey forced his drowsy body upright. "What's wrong?"

"My brother... He, uh... Something happened at work and he's injured."

That woke Nursey up completely. "Shit. How bad?"

"I don't know yet. He's in surgery, and--" The words caught in Dex's throat as he choked back a sob. "Fuck! I'm sorry, I can't talk."

"Hey, hey, no! Don't apologize!" Nursey tossed off his covers and rushed to his teammate's side. Any injury that required immediate surgery had to be relatively serious. The fact that Dex did not shrug him off or push him away when Nursey hugged him told him how worried he really was.

Dex rested his forehead on Nursey's shoulder. "I'm so worried, I can't even think of sleeping right now. Stuck in this fucking hotel on a roadie now of all times... I just want to go home."

Nursey rubbed his back. "Okay. Let's go."

"It's 1am and we're in Connecticut. What's your plan, Nurse? Steal the team bus?"

"I'll rent a car."

"You're only 20 -- you can't."

"No, it's fine. If you're under 25 they just slap you with a couple extra charges, no big deal."

"What? No, I can't let you just--"

Nursey interrupted him mid-protest. "Shut up, Poindexter. We're going, end of story. Go tell someone the situation so that the coaches know where we are and meet me in the lobby. I'll talk to the front desk about finding a rental car. We'll be in Portland in four hours, tops."

"But--"

"Go!"

Nursey arranged for a car while Dex told Bitty and Chowder that they were leaving, and half an hour later they were ready to go. Nursey stopped Dex once the reached the car. "I'll drive. You have enough on your mind right now."

Dex sat down obediently in the passenger side and buckled his seatbelt. "I'm sorry about all this. What do I owe you for the car?"

"What? Fuck, Dex. No. Nothing." Nursey scoffed.

They did not speak again until they had been on the interstate for half an hour. "Thanks again for this," Dex said as he drummed his fingers anxiously on his knee. "Not many people would do something like this for a guy they barely like."

"Dex, sweetheart, it's okay. Of course I'd help. I'm happy to."

"Sweetheart?"

Nursey bit his lip and frowned at the road. "I was trying to be comforting like Bitty would be... I guess it sounds weird coming from a guy like me. Forget I said it, but _only_ that part. I mean every other word."

Dex chuckled quietly. "Well, thanks then..."

"And when have I ever said I didn't like you?"

"Well, just... I don't know. We fight a lot."

"Well, I like you. A lot. You're a good guy. I kinda thought we were already friends... Do you 'barely like' me?"

"No, that's not it, just... I don't know. Sorry. My head's a mess right now."

"If you're hungry, I have some vegan jerky in my bag."

Dex snorted out a laugh. "What the fuck is vegan jerky?"

"It's good, I swear!" Nursey laughed back. He turned his head briefly and saw the worried expression lift from Dex's face for the first time since he had woken up. Nursey grinned as he focussed back on the road.

"I think I'll pass, thanks."

"Your loss, dude."

"You know jerky is _meat,_ right? Like, that's basically the only ingredient. Chips aren't 'potato jerky' and dehydrated tofu or whatever is still just tofu."

"Hey, whatever man. More for me." Nursey winked at him, but Dex was no longer smiling. "He's going to be okay, you know..."

"You don't know that." The old worried expression had returned to his face. "My mom was so upset when she called... I don't even know what happened exactly. She said she'd call me when they knew more, but that was almost two hours ago. What if they can't call me right now because he's--" His voice cracked.

"Dex, it's okay. I know you're worried sick, so cry if you need to. I'm sure your brother will be okay. He's already in surgery, right? So the worst part is over. Whatever was wrong is being fixed right now."

"He's my best friend in the entire world. What if something happens? What if this isn't something that can be fixed?"

"You'll drive yourself crazy worrying like that. Look, we'll be there in... like, less than two-ish hours. Did you tell your parents that you were coming?"

"Their phones are off, my sister-in-law too. They must all be at the hospital by now."

"Do you know which hospital? Do you have more than one?"

"Yeah, I'll give you directions when we reach town... Heh." Dex scoffed quietly.

"What?"

"Nothing, just... This is definitely not how I pictured your first visit to my hometown. Or meeting my family, for that matter."

Nursey's breath caught in his throat. Now was not the time to be reading into anything, but he could not help the hopeful flutter in his chest. "How _did_ you picture it?"

"Oh, uh... I don't know," Dex answered sheepishly. He did not know how to explain it without confessing his true feelings for Nursey.

The truth was that Dex had fallen for Nursey some time over the summer. He could not pinpoint a specific moment, but somewhere along the way Dex realized that when he came home from the boat, Nursey's texts were the first things he wanted to see. Ridiculous selfies or hipster photos of lattes or stories of his latest clumsy mishaps -- Dex loved them all. When he returned to Samwell that fall for their second year, Nursey was still the first face he wanted to see.

"Hey, Nursey?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for all those texts this summer and over Christmas. Those were fun."

"Really?" Nursey laughed. "What made you think of those? I thought you would get annoyed for sure."

"No, I liked them."

"But you still thought _I_ didn't like _you?_ "

Dex sighed. "I don't know..."

"Well, I'm glad you liked them. I liked hearing from you too, even if you were busy most of the time. Maybe I'll join you on that lobster boat one of these days."

"Hah! Your clumsy ass would go overboard _**immediately**_."

"Probably," Nursey said with a laugh. "You'd just have to come rescue me, then. Think you could handle giving me mouth-to-mouth, Poindexter?"

"It's not a kiss, you know."

"I know." Nursey saw his opening and took it. "But since you mentioned it... Could you handle kissing me? Like, what if we were playing truth or dare, or spin the bottle or something?"

"Spin the bottle? What are we, 12?"

"Humour me." Nursey's grip tightened nervously on the steering wheel.

"Like, in front of everyone? No way."

"Then... Alone?"

"I, uh--" Dex sighed heavily. "Okay, so you _**have**_ figured it out, then. _Great_ ," he said sarcastically. "Congratulations."

"Congratulations? What did I figure out, exactly?"

"Yeah, yeah, I get it. 'Poindexter's got a big, unchill crush on me. _So_ hilarious!' Im stressed out enough right now, so can you hold off teasing me until tomorrow? Or at _least_ until we leave the hospital?"

"You have a crush on me? Seriously?!"

"Nursey, _**please...**_ "

"No-- Shit, Dex! Come on! Are you kidding me? I've liked you since first semester -- **_freshman year._** "

"...What?"

"I flirt with you constantly. Or, well, I've tried to back off a little because you seemed uncomfortable..."

"I wasn't uncomfortable, I'm just awkward!"

Nursey laughed. "Well, I'm glad we got this straightened out finally."

"Holy shit... You...?"

"I?"

Dex shook his head slowly. "You're serious? You're being 100% honest when you say you like me? This isn't a joke? Because I swear to god if you're lying right now I will **never** forgive you."

"I'm 150% serious, Dex. I would never lie about something like this. _Especially_ to you."

"I... Fuck, this has been the weirdest day..."

Nursey reached across the centre console and grabbed Dex's hand. "We'll continue this conversation tomorrow, okay? You have enough on your mind right now, I don't want to add to that." He squeezed Dex's hand and flashed him a quick sideways smile when Dex squeezed back.

"Thanks, Nursey."

"No worries. Try to get some sleep, okay? Rest a bit and we'll be there before you know it."

"You don't know where we're going..." Dex stifled a yawn as he tried to object.

"I'll wake you up when we're close to town, you can direct me from there. Rest. _Please_. Even if you can't actually fall asleep, just rest."

Despite his efforts to stay awake, the hum of the car and the warmth of Nursey's hand still holding his own lulled Dex to sleep. He woke up just outside of Portland. "I can't believe I actually slept..." He yawned before noticing that he was still holding Nursey's hand. "Shit! Sorry. That must've been uncomfortable..."

"It's fine," Nursey said with a smile, but he flexed his fingers before returning his freed right hand to the steering wheel at last. "You'll have to tell me where to go from here. Which hospital?"

"My mom said they were at the Mercy," Dex quietly directed Nursey towards the hospital.

"Want me to wait out here?"

"No," Dex answered quickly. "Um... Unless you don't want to come up..."

"I'll go up with you if you want me to."

"I want you to," he insisted. "I, uh... My parents will probably want to meet the guy who dropped everything to drive me to Maine in the middle of the night... It's probably too much to tell them _why_ you did it, but still."

Nursey chuckled as he parked. "What do you mean, 'why' I did it?"

"Well, because you like me... Right?"

"What? That didn't factor in at all. You wwre upset, I wasn't about to let you drive _yourself_. And being stuck in that hotel room with no news would have been just as bad. Either way, you're my friend. Of course I would help any way I could. Wouldn't you?"

"Well, yeah but..." Dex trailed off as they got out of the car. He tried calling his parents' again but both cell phones were still off. "I guess we just go up there and ask his room at the desk? If he has one yet?"

"Yeah, he'll probably be out of surgery by now right? It's been over 4 hours now at least "

"Unless it's really bad..."

Nursey put his hand on Dex's shoulder and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "You're here now. It's okay."

Dex breathed a small sigh of relief when he heard that his brother was already out of surgery and in a room, but he was still so anxious to get up to see him that he nearly collided with a woman hurrying off the elevator. "Sorr--"

"Will?!" The woman gasped and hugged him tightly. "Oh my god, I can't believe you're here!"

"How is John?" Dex asked.

"He's doing good. Still asleep, but your parents are in the room with him right now. Only two people at a time but you can wait in the hall. It's room 304. I'm just giving my dad a quick call to update him and then I'll be back up there. I was about to call you too! Ahh! I'm so glad you're here, kiddo!!!" She hurried away while Dex and Nursey stepped onto the elevator.

"So, that was my sister in law..." Dex chuckled softly. "I'll introduce you to her properly later." They reached the hospital room and stopped outside the door. He could hear his parents talking softly inside. "Thank god he's okay..."

Nursey smiled gently and placed his hand back on Dex's shoulder. He could see the last bit of tension melting away. "You should just go in there. Like it really matters if there are three visitors instead of two in the room." To his surprise, Dex folded into him, resting his head on his shoulder and wrapping his arms around Nursey's waist. "Hey, you okay?"

"I'm fine. Really, I..." Hot tears fell onto Nursey's shoulder. "I'm just so relieved. He's my best friend. And you drove me all the way here and... Fuck, I'm sorry." Dex hung his head while he wiped his eyes. "This is so embarrassing..."

"Dex, it's okay. Let it out. If ever there was a time to let yourself cry, it's now. It's been a stressful night. Come here," Nursey said quietly and pulled him in for another hug. He placed a gentle kiss against his temple and rubbed Dex's back to comfort him. "It's okay..."

Dex's sister in law returned a minute later and was startled by the sight of him crying. "What happened??"

Nursey gave her a small smile and continued rubbing his friend's back. "Just the emotions of the day catching up to him..."

"I know the feeling, kiddo..." She told her brother in law and patted his arm. Now that the worry was over, and adrenaline was subsiding, she felt exhausted as well. "Um..." She looked up at Nursey. "Sorry, I thought you were just a random hospital visitor earlier. You came with Will?"

"He's my, uh, teammate. Friend," Dex said as he wiped his eyes again and pulled away from Nursey. "Sorry, uh... Derek Nurse, Adele Poindexter."

"I drove him here. Nice to meet you."

"You too. You drove all the way from Samwell?"

"Uh, well... We were in Connecticut. Played a roadie at Yale last night," Nursey explained.

Dex pressed his shoulder against Nursey's, too embarrassed to be seen hugging him again in front of his sister, but wanting to keep some kind of physical contact with him. "When I told him what happened, he just..." Dex smiled softly at him and shook his head in disbelief. "He found us a car and just... _Drove_."

"Well, that's quite a friend. You should hang onto him, Will." His sister in law smiled at them both.

"Yeah," Dex replied with a laugh.

His mom stepped out of the room and burst into tears as soon as she saw him. "William! What are you doing here?" She grabbed him in an even tighter hug than Adele had. His dad came outside at the commotion as well.

"I was worried..." Dex admitted.

His dad hugged him as well. "John's okay. He's sleeping, but okay. We were about to head home and come back in a few hours when he's awake. Are you staying coming home with us?"

"Yeah, just, let me go see him quickly first. I want to see him for myself."

"Of course."

Nursey waited back in the hallway with the Poindexter family while Dex ducked into his brother's hospital room. He smiled awkwardly. "Um..."

Adele stepped in. "This is-- _Derek_ , right?" She clarified and Nursey nodded his head. "He's Will's friend from Samwell. He drove him here."

"Well, aren't you a sweet boy?" Dex's mom hugged him without warning and Nursey let out a surprised laugh. "You must be tired, too. Stay with us tonight, get some sleep."

When Dex returned to the hallway a few minutes later, he found Nursey chatting quietly with his parents. Adele spotted him and hurried over. "He's your boyfriend, isn't he?" She whispered.

"Uh, well, not exactly. Maybe soon? We haven't really had a chance to talk about it yet..." Dex glanced over at Nursey. "Do you think mom and dad would freak out? Obviously I would keep it quiet for a while in case it doesn't work out, but..."

"The guy literally rolled out of bed and drove you four states over for a family emergency without you even asking. Your mom is still holding his hand and crying, I think it's safe to say they like him already." She gave Dex a final hug. "I like him already, too. Make sure you come back in the morning when John's awake, okay? He'll be so happy you came-- or, well, he'll be mad that you worried so much to come here, but he'll be happy to see you."

She went back to the hospital room to be with her husband and Dex rejoined his parents and Nursey. They followed a few steps behind his parents as they left the hospital and headed for the parking lot. "See you at home," he told his parents and got into Nursey's rental car. "Hey, Nurse...?"

"Yeah?"

"I really can't thank you enough for all of this..."

"You don't have to. I'm happy I could help." Nursey smiled at him and they stared at each other in the dim light of the car's dashboard. "You know... That talk we're going to have tomorrow? I'm _probably_ going to ask you to be my boyfriend..."

Dex laughed and broke eye contact. "Well, I'm _probably_ gonna say yes..." He looked back up. "Can I kiss you right now, or do I have to wait until that talk is over?"

"I don't know, _**can**_ you?" Nursey grinned and leaned closer. "Let's give it a try and see."

"Ugh." Dex groaned and closed the final distance between their lips. Their talk could wait until tomorrow, but tonight, Dex was happy to have Nursey in his life any way he could.

"Hey, Poindexter...?" Nursey asked as they parted.

"Yeah?"

"Want to be my boyfriend?"

Dex chuckled and kissed him one more time. "... _Probably_." He grinned.

**Author's Note:**

> Let's just pretend that there's an easy place to rent a car at one o'clock in the morning in New Haven. Pretend the car rental places at the airport stay open that long for late flights (because some places do, just nothing at Tweed is telling me so)


End file.
